Bitcoin Price Rises As Third Chinese Exchange Halts Withdrawals

The bitcoin price rose on Thursday after Chinese digital-currency exchange BTCC said it would temporarily halt withdrawals while it upgrades its anti-money laundering systems, becoming the third major exchange to do so. Last week, OKCoin and Huobi, which, along with BTCC, comprise China's "big three" bitcoin exchanges, made similar announcements, saying the necessary upgrades should take a month, if not less. One bitcoin cost $1,019 in recent trade, according to Coin Market Cap. In the past, the bitcoin price has fallen following reports of Chinese regulators stepping up pressure on the exchanges. Instead, the price reaction on Thursday suggests that investors are less worried about interference from Chinese authorities, who have sought to tighten oversight over the country's exchanges in recent months. "The market is kind of number," said Chris Burniske, blockchain analyst and products lead at ARK Invest. "It's priced in this information and it's not concerned." Earlier in the week, a former governor of the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, said on local television that bitcoin will continue to exist in China.